1. Field of Invention
The invention pertains to the art of inflatables, and more particularly to the art of manufacture of inflatable life preservers, especially those adapted to be integrated in a vest or jacket like protective garment. The invention thus falls within the field of inflatable life preservers, which are an integral part of a garment designed for a use other than lifesaving. The invention, further, is so designed as to be adaptable for military and civilian use, installed in an oilskin jacket.
2. Prior Art
Most inflatable personal flotation devices in use today are a separate unit requiring extra time and a conscious awareness of a dangerous situation for use. The inflatable personal flotation devices that currently are integrated into garments are primarily designed for use by the military, intended for specific applications, or for the yachtsman who occasionally is exposed to a potentially dangerous situation. In that regard many professional mariners, especially commercial fishermen, are frequently reluctant to be seen, or to be bothered, wearing a personal flotation device even when conditions are dangerous.
Typical of the prior art as described above are the following patents:
J. Harding, et al.: 3,345,657 PA1 H. J. Moran, et al.: 3,771,183 PA1 C. E. Erickson 2,823,396 PA1 George Bailhe: 2,607,934 in 1952 PA1 K. A. L. Nojd: Dansk 103929 in 1966 PA1 A. J. Steinthal: 3,441,963 in 1969 PA1 Messrs. Spinosa and Knoll: 4,416,641 in 1983 PA1 Kelsey Burr: 4,560,356 in 1985
It has been important, in inflatable personal flotation devices as those shown in the prior art patents, to assure that the flotation compartment design be capable of use with various types of military, civilian, and sportsmen garments and that the flotation compartment offer ample buoyancy so as to keep the head of the wearer out of the water. The prior art patent of H. J. Moran even offers an additional flotation compartment as a safety factor; that is, if one of the two flotation compartments is damaged the other will adequately support the wearer. The prior art inflatable personal flotation devices have unquestionably been of great benefit to those who had need and were equipped with one of these devices.
However, certain deficiencies must be noted in the prior art. In the prior art inflatable personal flotation devices cited above, these inflatables are designed to be worn separately and/or incorporated into a specific type garment. It is not reasonable to expect a professional mariner, such as a commercial fisherman to wear a military flight suit or a sportsman vest while at sea. It is also impossible for an inflatable personal flotation device to save a life if it is not on the person or available to them at their critical time of need. The majority of deaths caused by man overboard accidents are not the result of a predictable situation or an inherently dangerous one; most often it is the result of a freak accident in which the unfortunate victim is pitched into the sea. According to the U.S. Coast Guard a full 75 per cent of these victims might have lived had they been wearing their personal flotation devices. It must also be noted that the large majority of mariners are not in the military and therefore do not have access to those inflatable life preservers of the prior art should they have the inclination to wear them. Although many commercially available life preservation devices have been approved by the U.S. Coast Guard, for use by the general public, for the most part these devices remain in a locker somewhere ready for use should the occasion arise. There are other products currently available that perform this function far better than an inflatable personal flotation device; for example the survival suit is designed to not only keep a victim afloat but also to protect against exposure and hypothermia. If a victim were aware of impending danger, i.e. the boat is sinking, or the weather is more severe than the boat is capable of withstanding, the victim would no doubt use the survival suit rather than the currently available personal flotation devices, both of which are probably in the same locker. It is therefore of primary importance that a personal flotation device become standard equipment of those who work at sea. This is best accomplished by integration of the inflatable flotation compartment with a garment that is already standard equipment for those who work at sea.
Mr. Bailhe in 1952 in his U.S. Pat. No. 2,607,934 disclosed his safety garment of a special design, inclusive of a high neck portion, where an inflating valve was secured. Then in 1966 in Dansk Pat. No. 103929, Mr. Nojd illustrated and described his garment of a somewhat special design and he provided alternatively used inflation subassemblies having exposed portions thereof for ready access. In 1969, Mr. Steinthal in U.S. Pat. No. 3,441,963 disclosed his inflatable sailing jacket of a somewhat special design and his alternatively used inflation subassemblies, which were exposed in part. Thereafter in 1983, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,416,641, Messrs. Spinosa and Knoll illustrated and described their anti-exposure jacket of a very special design and in one embodiment the alternatively used inflation subassemblies had exposed portions thereof for ready access, and in another embodiment, they were covered by an outer garment portion. More recently in 1985 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,356, Kelsey Burr illustrated and described his several embodiments of his personal flotation devices. In one worn on a belt, an inflatable partial lifesaving ring was packed into a rectangular container. Access to the container was undertaken by pulling on a side thereof initially secured by loop and hook fasteners. Moreover the pull on this side also pulled an attached lanyard, which caused the release of compressed fluid used in inflating the partial lifesaving ring.
The present invention is intended to correct these deficiencies in the prior art, by integrating the inflatable flotation chamber with the most common and most utilized piece of personal gear used by all those who venture upon the sea, most especially commercial fishermen and others who make their living upon the sea. In so doing, this integration of the inflatable flotation chamber must not change the feel and comfort of the type of garment previously worn by the seagoing person. Moreover, the alternatively used inflation subassemblies, when not to be used, must be protectively covered, keeping them from being entangled during the working times of the seagoing person. Yet when she or he, in an emergency, needs to activate either of these inflation subassemblies, all she or he must be required to do is take either a right or left hand and quickly expose them and activate them.